Renata Walendziak (née Pentlinowska; born 18 January 1950) is a Polish female former long-distance runner who competed in track running, cross country running and the marathon.Renata Walendziak. Track and Field Statistics. Retrieved 2018-02-09. She was born in Grabowo Bobowskie in the north of the country.Andrzej Karczmarski, Ryszard Sadkowski: Z historii lekkoatletyki na Pomorzu Gdańskim. T. 1. Pruszcz Gdański: AGNI, 2011, s. 264-265. .
Walendziak was a five-time competitor for Poland at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, competing every year from 1974 to 1978. She placed in the top thirty women on all her appearances, with her best results being fifth individually in 1976 and a team bronze medal in 1975, helped on by individual silver medallist Bronisława Ludwichowska.Renata Walendziak. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved 2018-02-09. Both she and Ludwichowska were winners at the high profile Cinque Mulini cross country, with Walendziak being the 1976 champion.Cinque Mulini Women's winners. Cinque Mulini. Retrieved on 2010-02-05. She made one major international appearance on the track, coming tenth in the 5000 metres at the 1974 European Athletics Championships.
Her career in the marathon began in 1979, when she won the inaugural edition of the Warsaw Marathon. A second win followed at the Otwock Marathon. Her times continued to improve, with 2:48:42 hours for fourth at the 1982 Košice Peace Marathon, 2:44:07 hours for third at the Berlin Marathon in 1983, then 2:41:34 hours for 18th at the New York City Marathon one month later. She set a time of 2:40:49 at the Debno Marathon, being runner-up to Jarmila Urbanová.Renata Walendziak. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved 2018-02-09. The Debno race was the venue for the Polish Marathon Championships in 1985 and 1986, which she won both times, with her second winning time of 2:32:30 hours being a career best.Polish Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
Seventh place at the 1984 New York City Marathon was a high point internationally on the roads for Walendziak. She did not rank highly when selected for Poland on the roads, coming 60th at the 1983 IAAF World Women's Road Race Championships, failing to finish at the 1985 World Marathon Cup, and placing 23rd at the European Marathon Cup in both 1985 and 1988. In 1987 she won the Warsaw Marathon for the second time in her career (the time of 2:38:24 was her second fastest ever) and she was also 15th at the London Marathon that year. Her last recorded marathon was at the age of 44, when she ran 3:22:05 in Warsaw.
International competitions 1974IAAF World Cross Country ChampionshipsMonza, Italy24thSenior race13:336thSenior team98 ptsEuropean ChampionshipsRome, Italy10th3000 m9:22.81975IAAF World Cross Country ChampionshipsRabat, Morocco13thSenior race14:203rdSenior team61 pts1976IAAF World Cross Country ChampionshipsChepstow, Wales5thSenior race17:005thSenior team87 pts1977IAAF World Cross Country ChampionshipsDüsseldorf, West Germany27thSenior race18:324thSenior team101 pts1978IAAF World Cross Country ChampionshipsGlasgow, United Kingdom29thSenior race17:585thSenior team122 pts1983IAAF World Women's Road Race ChampionshipsSan Diego, United States60th10K37:401985World Marathon CupHiroshima, Japan —MarathonEuropean Marathon CupRome, Italy23rdMarathon2:45:221988European Marathon CupHuy, Belgium23rdMarathon2:42:08
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